DGFT widens SEZ QCO/BIS import exemption to all authorised-operation goods but ties DTA clearance to full QCO compliance
DGFT extends SEZ QCO/BIS exemption to all authorised-operation imports, conditioning DTA clearance on full QCO compliance
Change
On 1 June 2026 the DGFT, by Notification No. 16/2026-27, amended Para 2.03(A)(iii) of FTP 2023 with immediate effect, extending the QCO/BIS exemption to all permissible goods SEZ Units and Developers import for authorised operations, while requiring full QCO/BIS compliance on any DTA clearance of those goods or products made from them, plus an undertaking to the Development Commissioner at import.
Why it matters
The QCO/BIS exemption for SEZ imports previously covered only inputs required for export production. Notification No. 16/2026-27 widens it to all permissible goods — raw materials, components, consumables, spares and capital goods — imported by SEZ Units and Developers for authorised operations, aligning the provision with the SEZ Act 2005 and Rule 27 of the SEZ Rules 2006. In exchange it imposes a clear new boundary: the exemption holds only for use inside the SEZ, and any removal, transfer or DTA clearance of the goods or anything manufactured from them triggers full QCO, BIS and other applicable-law compliance at the time of clearance. SEZ Units and Developers must file an undertaking to this effect with the Development Commissioner at importation. The amendment takes effect immediately.
Implications
- — Trade-compliance teams at SEZ Units and Developers can now import the full range of authorised-operation goods QCO/BIS-exempt rather than only export-production inputs — but must file an undertaking with the Development Commissioner at the time of each importation, a documentation step that did not previously attach to this exemption.
- — Customs and clearance teams at SEZ entities must treat any DTA removal of exempt-imported goods, or products manufactured from them, as a QCO/BIS-triggering event — goods that entered exempt cannot move into the domestic market without meeting the QCOs and BIS requirements in force at clearance, so DTA-bound stock needs a separate compliance path from export-bound or SEZ-consumed stock.
- — Sourcing and procurement teams at SEZ manufacturers must segregate exempt SEZ-use inventory from DTA-destined inventory in their systems, because the compliance status now turns on destination rather than on whether the input fed export production.
Who is affected
- — Trade-compliance and import teams at SEZ Units and SEZ Developers
- — Customs and DTA-clearance teams handling SEZ-to-domestic-market movements
- — Sourcing and procurement teams at SEZ-based manufacturers
What to watch
- — Immediate effect (1 June 2026): the revised Para 2.03(A)(iii) applies; the import-stage undertaking to the Development Commissioner is required from this date.
- — At any DTA clearance: QCO/BIS and other applicable-law compliance is assessed against the requirements in force at the time of clearance, not at import.
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